Annual Appeal Letter

March 18th, 2010

2009-2010 Annual Giving Appeal

Dear Friends,

With the first year in our new location under our belt, which included the doubling of our staff, families and students, we are pleased with the growth of the programs offered to the Belfast community and surrounding towns. We currently have over 100 students taking advantage of the Montessori education, summer camps, and before and after care programs. We hope you share our view that our programs are critical to the educational growth and support of the children in our community, and find our school worthy of your financial support.

Cornerspring Montessori prides itself on offering children an education that honors individualism and independence from preschool through 6th grade, as well as a place for families to have their children participating in a quality preschool based on Montessori philosophies that also meets their child care needs. In addition, our school finds satisfaction in offering creative and explorative summer camp programs for any child of Waldo County age 3-12.

We strive to keep our tuitions at the lowest possible level and therefore set tuition at a lower amount than it actually costs to educate each child at our school. We also maintain a tuition assistance program in order for all families to have the opportunity to experience a Montessori education that otherwise may not be affordable. The range of families we are able to serve is well worth the effort to keep tuition low; however, it means there is a gap between our tuition income and our school’s operating costs each month. As a result, we are challenged with the task of bridging this gap in order to uphold our mission of offering affordable tuition and a quality education for all our current and future students, and therefore are asking for your support.

Cornerspring Montessori School is an important part of this community and we are very proud of the wonderful and generous support we have received in the past. Along with our dedicated and professional staff and board members, we owe our continued success to the many families, friends, community members and organizations that have supported our programs by contributing in various ways to our annual fundraising events. Your contribution will help provide an educational experience like no other for many children in this community, allowing Cornerspring to offer:

A school that fosters individualized learning styles
A place where students become active learners by encouraging a curriculum consisting of interactive manipulative materials
A learning experience that enhances the love for learning that will continue to grow throughout the student’s life
An environment where children can feel safe, secure and, most importantly, happy

We understand that we are asking for your support at an economically challenging time. We would be honored if you would consider giving Cornerspring Montessori School a tax-deductible gift (every amount helps). We want to assure you that your contribution will have a direct impact on our community, school and students.